Update: 10/04/07

Effective Oct. 1, 2007, U.S. Citizens traveling by air to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda must present a passport or other WHTI-compliant documentation to enter or depart from the United States. It is always strongly recommended that U.S. Citizens verify the specific documentary requirements for their destination country.

When in doubt though use this website:
http://travel.state.gov/passport/fri/pubs/pubs_854.html

Here is a list of some countries that have special passport expiration rules.

• Brazil, Ecuador (including the Galapagos Islands), Indonesia, Israel, Malaysia, Paraguay, Romania, Singapore: six months.
• Cambodia, Denmark (including Greenland), Fiji, Switzerland: three months (Denmark applies its three-month rule to your stay in any of 15 European countries).

There are many others. Some countries count their expiration windows from date of entry into their country, others from scheduled departure, so be sure to ask. For further information about special passport expiration rules, check the U. S. Department of State’s listing of foreign entry requirements. Other good sources of information are your airline, your travel agent, and the host country’s embassy or consulate.

U.S. Government Delays Land and Sea Passport Requirement for Canada, Mexico and Bermuda and Announces New Phased Initiative

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Department of State (DOS) announced on June 20, that they have delayed the land and sea passport requirement for Canada, Mexico and Bermuda that was previously scheduled to begin as early as Jan. 1, 2008, and have initiated a new “phased approach” to implementing the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI). As a result, beginning Jan. 31, 2008, U.S. and Canadian citizens have the option, in lieu of a passport or WHTI-compliant alternate document, to present a government-issued photo ID along with a birth certificate at land and sea borders. As part of a future phase, it is anticipated that the WHTI passport requirement for land and sea borders will be rescheduled for mid-year 2008.

As part of this new “phased” initiative, beginning Jan. 31, 2008, DHS will also eliminate the routine practice of accepting oral declarations of citizenship at land and sea borders. All travelers will be required to present physical proof of citizenship as defined by DHS. As a result, if a passport or WHTI-compliant alternate document (passport card, NEXUS, SENTRI or FAST) is not provided as proof of citizenship, the following options are available:

• U.S. and Canadian citizens, except for children as noted below, may present a government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license, plus proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate or a copy of a birth certificate. The birth certificate does not need to be certified or contain a raised seal.
• U.S. and Canadian citizens 15 and under, as well as children ages 18 and under traveling in designated groups, may present a certified copy of their birth certificate. U.S. children may also present Consular Reports of Birth Abroad or Certificates of Naturalization.
• U.S. citizens on round-trip cruise ship voyages that originate and end in the United States may present a government-issued photo ID and either a 1) birth certificate, 2) Consular Report of Birth Abroad or 3) Certificate of Naturalization.
  Complete details, including an explanation of WHTI-compliant alternate forms of identification, can be found at: http://www.dhs.gov/xnews/releases/pr_1182350422171.shtm and http://www.dhs.gov/xnews/releases/pr_1182351923729.shtm.

ASTA Alert: Update on Temporary Repeal of Passport Requirements

Summary
ASTA issued the following ASTA Alert on June 19, 2007.

Update on Temporary Repeal of Passport Requirement for Canada, Mexico, Caribbean and Bermuda

The State Department has recently updated its Web site regarding passports with clarified language from the Department of Homeland Security regarding the travel requirements for children as well as the new accommodations announced June 8. The updated information can be found at the Department of State Web site. Also check the State Department's Frequently Asked Questions and Answers.

Specifically, as of January 2007, all passengers, regardless of age, needed a passport for air travel within the Western Hemisphere. In accordance to the new travel accommodations announced June 8, 2007, below are specific changes regarding children:

Children 16 and under traveling with a parent or legal guardian will be required to present the proof of passport application status from the Department of State (DOS) for departure from the United States as well as re-entry to the United States.
Children 16 and under traveling alone should carry a copy of their birth certificate, baptismal record or a hospital record of birth in the United States as well as the proof of passport application status from the Department of State (DOS) for departure from the United States as well as re-entry to the United States.
Children older than 16 and traveling alone are required to have a government-issued photo ID in addition to the proof of passport application status
Acceptable confirmation of a passport application may be found at the Department of State Web site at http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/status/status_2567.html.

Passport Update: Pending Applications Allowed, Offers Travel Flexibility

Summary
The following was just announced by the U.S. government on Friday, June 8, 2007.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security announced June 7, 2007, that U.S. citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda who have applied for but not yet received passports can nevertheless temporarily enter and depart from the United States by air with a government issued photo identification and Department of State official proof of application for a passport through September 30, 2007. The federal government is making this accommodation for air travel due to longer than expected processing times for passport applications in the face of record-breaking demand.

The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) was mandated by Congress in the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to strengthen border security and facilitate entry into the United States for citizens and legitimate international visitors. WHTI requirements for air travel took effect on January 23, 2007.

Adults who have applied for but not yet received a passport should present government-issued photo identification and an official proof of application from the U.S. Department of State. Children under the age of 16 traveling with their parents or legal guardian will be permitted to travel with the child's proof of application. Travelers who have not applied for a passport should not expect to be accommodated. U.S. citizens with pending passport applications can obtain proof of application at: http://travel.state.gov.

What will be acceptable proof of application for a passport?

A print-out of the online status check accessed at http://travel.state.gov/passport, showing an application has been received by the Department of State. Then they need to click on : Checking the Status of Your Application once they get there.

Currently, it is taking up to 1 week for Expedited Applications and up to 4 weeks for Routine Applications to be tracked online. Please allow at least that much time before checking the status of your application.

Since implementation, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has and will continue to exercise its current authorities in unique circumstances to allow individuals subject to the WHTI requirements into the United States based on other evidence of identity and citizenship.

As early as January 2008, the departments will begin to implement WHTI at land and sea ports of entry. A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking outlining a phased implementation is expected to be published in the Federal Register within the next two weeks.

Travel document security remains a top priority for the U.S. Government. Both the 9/11 Commission and the U.S. Congress urged strengthening of travel documents to prevent entry of terrorists across our borders, reduce use of fraudulent documents, and speed up entry procedures.

This accommodation does not affect entry requirements to other countries. Americans traveling to a country that requires passports must still present those documents.

For more information, click here or go to http://Travel.State.Gov.

New Passport Rules For Children
Updated 2/22/2007

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Bush administration is expected to announce on Thursday that it will exempt children from new rules that will require people to show passports when entering the U.S. at land or sea borders.

The new passport requirements are expected to take effect as soon as January 2008. But under the expected announcement, children aged 15 or younger with parental consent will be allowed to cross the borders at land and sea entry points with a certified copy of their birth certificates rather than passports.

Children aged 16 through 18 traveling with school, religious, cultural or athletic groups and under adult supervision will also be allowed to travel with only their birth certificates.

The details were described by a Department of Homeland Security official who requested anonymity because the announcement has not yet been made.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff was expected to announce the relaxation in rules at a speech in Detroit on Thursday afternoon.

Beginning last January 23, nearly all air travelers entering the U.S. who are citizens of Canada, Mexico, Bermuda or the Caribbean _ as well as returning American citizens _ have been required to display passports. Children entering the United States by air will still be required to show passports.

The Homeland Security official said the easing of rules for children entering by land or sea was in part the result of talks between the department and Canadians and interested state officials. Canada and U.S. border states have been concerned that the passport requirements would hurt legitimate travel and commerce.

When the new requirements for travelers crossing land and sea borders take effect, it will bring residents of Western Hemisphere nations under the same rules as travelers from the rest of the world.

The rules were mandated by Congress in 2004 as a response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and the recommendations by the Sept. 11 commission that border security be tightened.

Last October, Congress passed an amendment sponsored by Sens. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, that would postpone the day the land and sea rules take effect for as long as 17 months, till June 2009, if certain conditions have not been met.

One of those conditions was to develop an alternative procedure for groups of children traveling across the border under adult supervision and with parental consent.

Chertoff will meet with local officials in Detroit before traveling to Ottawa, Canada, for meetings Friday with his Mexican and Canadian counterparts.